Holy Cross Replaces Hofstra

[wgdsr]

duke could've played them as well if not too far a trip. but of course now they have denver in their holster.
actually uva could've played them. they have romo, but maybe a gig on monday. and they may need them.

hoo knows how things will play out including selection criteria. i advocated for the game not based on seeing a good game or guts, but upside/downside possibilities for the orange.
it's my opinion from watching it clisely over the years, that ooc optimal has been for a mix of very strong opponents (for rpi and quality wins) and several cupcakes for record.

if hofstra was indeed in that "middle ground" this year, that's the worst possible opponent. finishes 21-35 rpi but still might beat you on a bad day.

the way things were lining up for the orange, it looked like to me lehigh was the better play. won't happen, and teams play on.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

 

[ivorytower]

Well SU is 4 games into the season having played 3 games against top 25 teams in Army, UVA, and Vermont. I think its pretty clear where/what the issues are. Not sure you need a game against Lehigh to know that we need FOGO depth, work on defending picks and the two man game and more consistency from the 2nd line and Chase.

Phaup taking 84% of reps will likely take a toll if that heavy usage continues for much longer. He has the taken the most reps per game of any fogo in the ACC and his method and slower exits are taxing.. Only LaScalla usage of 76% comes close and his exits are faster and cleaner.
ND two fogos are winning at ridiculous rates splitting faceoffs both will be very fresh when Cuse plays them. .. UNC and Duke are using their second and third fogos more than a third of the game. Not sure if rule changes have changed the equation but our duo last year was seen as a strength reflected in our tempered hopes for Ierlan

Cuse need not explain or appease others as their schedule and upcoming stretch of several tough games speaks for itself . Ill go as far to say that a thursday game this week would have been preferable, Cuse will be in Durham practicing on field Wednesday for a well rested Duke.

 

[JeremyCuse]

Phaup taking 84% of reps will likely take a toll if that heavy usage continues for much longer. He has the taken the most reps per game of any fogo in the ACC and his method and slower exits are taxing.. Only LaScalla usage of 76% comes close and his exits are faster and cleaner.
ND two fogos are winning at ridiculous rates splitting faceoffs both will be very fresh when Cuse plays them. .. UNC and Duke are using their second and third fogos more than a third of the game. Not sure if rule changes have changed the equation but our duo last year was seen as a strength reflected in our tempered hopes for Ierlan

Cuse need not explain or appease others as their schedule and upcoming stretch of several tough games speaks for itself . Ill go as far to say that a thursday game this week would have been preferable, Cuse will be in Durham practicing on field Wednesday for a well rested Duke.

Agreed about Phaup, to me (and I could certainly be wrong) the change in rules has had a very negative effect on Varello. He looked great last year and now he looks lost, even worse then a few years ago when he struggled leading to Phaup taking over. Currently hes at 28% albeit in limited draws, which is ghastly. I am unclear why Savage is not getting any draws after drawing multiple pre-season accolades from Desko. I hope i am wrong but I really hope were not trying to go with the upper class guys first for some reason. Savage should be taking multiple draws on Sat once SU hopefully builds a nice lead. I like Varello a lot but its hard to have any trust at all in him against the ACC and others. If Phaup were to get hurt we would be in disastrous trouble.

I agree with scheduling Holy Cross and it appears SU reached out to them first before engaging with Lehigh. I really hope we use the game to get a feel for some of the young guys because the ultimate test is the following week.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

 

[Powellfan]

Agreed about Phaup, to me (and I could certainly be wrong) the change in rules has had a very negative effect on Varello. He looked great last year and now he looks lost, even worse then a few years ago when he struggled leading to Phaup taking over. Currently hes at 28% albeit in limited draws, which is ghastly. I am unclear why Savage is not getting any draws after drawing multiple pre-season accolades from Desko. I hope i am wrong but I really hope were not trying to go with the upper class guys first for some reason. Savage should be taking multiple draws on Sat once SU hopefully builds a nice lead. I like Varello a lot but its hard to have any trust at all in him against the ACC and others. If Phaup were to get hurt we would be in disastrous trouble.

I agree with scheduling Holy Cross and it appears SU reached out to them first before engaging with Lehigh. I really hope we use the game to get a feel for some of the young guys because the ultimate test is the following week.

I have to imagine that going into the season, the coaches thought they would be set at face-off with two very good FOGOs in Phaup and Varello, and thought the best option for Savage was to redshirt him. You rarely ever need three good FOGOs in a season, and if Savage is that promising, it makes sense to try and get an extra year out of him. With Varello struggling, I wonder if they are rethinking things. You may not need three good options, but you certainly need two, especially with, as others have pointed out, the way in which Phaup takes the face-off.

I think Varello's numbers are a little unfair to him - he's only entered the game when Phaup has been struggling, so if Phaup isn't doing well there isn't much to beleive that Varello will fair much better. But there is probably a reason why Varello isn't getting in there, last year, even when Phaup was doing well, Varello would still get runs. Its a shame because on paper, Varello should be a good change of pace for Phaup, its just not working out this year.

The only other theory I have is that they are keeping Savage in the wings for ACC play, and don't want much tape to leak out about him. That, I admit is probably far fetched, and not really a thing Desko is known to do.

 

[sholokov2]

I have to imagine that going into the season, the coaches thought they would be set at face-off with two very good FOGOs in Phaup and Varello, and thought the best option for Savage was to redshirt him. You rarely ever need three good FOGOs in a season, and if Savage is that promising, it makes sense to try and get an extra year out of him. With Varello struggling, I wonder if they are rethinking things. You may not need three good options, but you certainly need two, especially with, as others have pointed out, the way in which Phaup takes the face-off.

I think Varello's numbers are a little unfair to him - he's only entered the game when Phaup has been struggling, so if Phaup isn't doing well there isn't much to beleive that Varello will fair much better. But there is probably a reason why Varello isn't getting in there, last year, even when Phaup was doing well, Varello would still get runs. Its a shame because on paper, Varello should be a good change of pace for Phaup, its just not working out this year.

The only other theory I have is that they are keeping Savage in the wings for ACC play, and don't want much tape to leak out about him. That, I admit is probably far fetched, and not really a thing Desko is known to do.

New FOGO position requires different leverage points. Leg power in the previous kneeling position was aligned with arms and back. In the more upright position, the initial leg drive is upwards diminishing straight ahead thrust. Varello may rely more on his legs than other FOGOs. He may be able to adjust.